You don't have to join the club right up front, but it can be very helpfull to vist one a few times before buying your own plane. Someone at the club probably has any plane you are thinking about buying and may even let you try flying it!

I agree that Firebird freedom is tough in nose first crashes, it is also prone to have more of them than a super cub. It is prone to tip stall, will not tolerate much damage to the wings, and can be frustrating to get trimmed if tail section gets damaged or replaced. I started an Rcplane ministry at my church about 8 months ago teaching ages 9yr and up how to fly. So far we have taught about 20 kids and 8 adults how to fly. I have tried about a dozen different electric planes, including Firebirds, in the process of learning to fly and in teaching others. The best one I've found is the Super Cub. We started the ministry with 6 super cubs, and, though some are pretty beat up from multiple crashes and repairs, they are still flying because they are tough as well as cheap and easy to repair. No one has crashed one 30mph nose first into the ground yet. Crash control or the natural flight characteristics of this plane will usually prevent a full nose first crash. But one was crashed full throttle into the side of the church! New prop and repaired the wing struts and it was good to go!. I still have my Firebird and love to fly it, but I reccomend it as a good second or third plane!